Better Manage and Save Money by Lowering Utility Expenses

There are a number of ways for you to better manage and save your money when it comes to lowering your electricity, home heating, and water expenses.

When buying new appliances, buy only Energy Star or other certified energy-efficient appliances. To find out which ones fit the bill, all you need to do is read the federally mandated Energy Guide Labels affixed to each appliance.

If your home is set up for it, use gas appliances (stoves, dryers, etc.) instead of electric wherever possible. Your gas expenses will be less than your electricity expenses for the equivalent amount of usage.

If you can get a free weatherization or home energy audit (or both), take advantage of it. While you don't have to implement every suggestion this expert makes, pay attention to what saves you money. The right knowledge is the kind of power that cuts down your energy expenses.

Adding insulation to your home, especially to your roof, is really managing your money wisely. The one-time expense of buying insulation can save you hundreds of dollars year after year for up to 15 years or longer.

To cut down on water costs, invest in an outdoor water gauge and make sure you're not over-watering your lawn, garden, and landscaping. You are also charged for sewage and if you are watering your lawn, you are not using sewage as you would if you flushed a toilet or drained your bath water. 

Do you need both a landline phone and a cell phone? If you use your cell phone as your primary means of communication while you're at home, then maybe you don't need a landline too. If you can do without, then by all means give it a try. Before you act on this suggestion, of course, make sure that the numbers work out right for you. If canceling your home phone means that your cell phone expenses will have to go up, then it may not be a good idea to get rid of that landline.

Take a closer look at your phone bill to determine if you're paying for any services that you don't use. If, for example, you're being charged for three-way calling and you never use it, you can lower your phone bill. It may seem like pinching pennies at first, but those pennies add up.

Use some sort of home budget software, like Budget Forecaster and Expense Tracker from Strativia, to see how much that nickel saved here and dime saved there adds up at the end of a year.

This method of managing your money in bite-sized increments is a realistically doable way of lowering your expenses and having more money in your pocket, or better yet - in the bank.

Kenneth C. Kelly is the President of Strativia, a financial management software development and services company specializing in applications for personal and business use.  Strativia is the developer of Budget Forecaster, a sophisticated home budget and personal finance management software package.  Website: www.strativia.com. Contact: info@strativia.com.

Budgeting & Personal Finance

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